ARTICLES ABOUT MIDDLE CLASS BY DATE - PAGE 5

NEW DELHI: The Indian middle class has emerged as an important player both in terms of its numerical size and the influence it wields and is likely to play a crucial role in the ongoing general elections, says diplomat-author Pavan K Varma . "The 2014 elections will test the ability of the middle class to apply its mind to issues, not only in the pursuit of its own interest, but from the point of view of what is good for the nation as a...

NEW DELHI: Batting for the middle class, PepsiCo India Chairman & CEO Shiv Shivakumar today said this election belongs to them and they would define policies, governance and also what is right for the society. He also said about 170 of the 543 constituencies in the country will be influenced by the social media which is used by the middle class to express their opinions. Shivakumar, who was earlier Nokia's Senior Vice President (India, Middle East & Asia) said the middle class feels left out. "In 2014 we are poised for a very definitive moment.

In an interview with ET Now, political analyst Neerja Chowdhury shares his views on the current political scenario in the country. Excerpts: ET Now: Mumbai goes to the polls tomorrow, but the tricky part about Mumbai is that everyone has an opinion, but no one goes to vote. Neerja Chowdhury: I hope it will be different this time around and they will vote. ET Now: Will it be different this time around? Neerja Chowdhury: I think so, because all over the country there seems to be an increasing political engagement, particularly amongst the urban middle class, and somewhere they are changing, if I may say so. In other metro centres also, as in Delhi, there have been large turnouts of people and this has included the middle class.

NEW DELHI: Terming Sanjaya Baru's book on Manmohan Singh "fundamentally contradicting", senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor questioned how the details could be true when the author himself was not associated with the PMO during UPA-II, the period he has cited in the book. "Baru has praised the PM and the government during the UPA-I when he used to be the PM's adviser between 2004-2008, ironically, he raised his concerns on the same PM when he left the office. So, I find the book fundamentally contradicting," said Tharoor.

The nine-phase 2014 election starting today is being dubbed as an "unprecedented" exercise, the like of which has not been seen before in 67 years of independent India. Every election is a pathbreaker, but some have had a greater political impact than others. The post-Nehru 1967 poll registered a visible Congress decline for the first time, 1971 transformed "goongi gudiya" Indira Gandhi into a strong leader who captured a divided Congress with her cry of "garibi hatao". Routed in 1977, it took her only two-and-half-years to bounce back to power in 1980.

NEW DELHI: The Congress manifesto stuck to the party's time-tested path by promising several reformist steps to revive the economy and achieve broader inclusive growth, while seeking to restate its commitment to social uplift through a series of 'rights' that it wants to legislate. It vowed to provide equal incentives to three key stakeholders in India's larger growth story — business, the youth-driven middle class and the poor. The manifesto, released by party chief Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday, promises to restore growth to 8 per cent-plus over the next three years.

NEW DELHI: With Rahul Gandhi in the vanguard, Congress is expected to fall back upon left-of-centre politics focusing on welfare measures after pursuing a policy of economic liberalisation under Manmohan Singh for 10 years. Widening the ambit of rights-based legislations to include healthcare and employment will be the crux of Congress manifesto to be released tomorrow by party President Sonia Gandhi in the presence of a galaxy of Congress leaders including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Rahul Gandhi.

By Ajay Shah We are all aware that India has young demographics. While this has worked well for India with a fast-growing workforce in the past, this will not (by itself) yield a comparable growth impulse in the coming years and decades. However, there is much more to the human capital of a country than a headcount of the workforce. There are numerous reasons why the capability of the Indian workforce is going to improve dramatically in the coming years. Strong improvements in human capital will fuel high Indian GDP growth for the coming 40 years.

NEW DELHI: Prominent fine-dining restaurant chains in the country are increasingly launching step-down versions of their eateries at much-lower price points to boost their business by catering to middle-class consumers in a slowing economy. In the last six months or so, Yeti launched Yeti Express , Punjabi By Nature launched Punjabi By Nature Quickie, Oh! Calcutta launched Oh! Calcutta Express and Busaba launched BusaGo. If the flagship brand offers a meal atRs 750-1,000 per person, a meal at the step-down versions cost as low asRs 200 per person.

NEW DELHI: Shiv Nadar-led HCL Corporation today announced Rs 1,000 crore investment to foray into the healthcare and wellness business and said it is aiming to cover 20 million people by 2020. HCL Corporation, the controlling arm of IT services major HCL Technologies and former PC maker HCL Infosystems , created a new subsidiary -- HCL Healthcare that will focus on the 300 million strong Indian urban middle class. It has roped in Johns Hopkins Medicine International to start this venture under HCL Avitas, a subsidiary of HCL Healthcare.